2026 FIFA World Cup Group F
FIFA World Cup group
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Group F of the 2026 FIFA World Cup is taking place from June 14 to 25, 2026.[1] The group consists of the Netherlands, Japan, Sweden, and Tunisia. The top two teams, possibly along with the third-placed team, will advance to the round of 32.[2]
Teams
| Draw position | Team | Pot | Confederation | Method of qualification |
Date of qualification |
Finals appearance |
Last appearance |
Previous best performance |
FIFA Rankings[3][4] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| November 2025[nb 1] | June 2026 | |||||||||
| F1 |  Netherlands | 1 | UEFA | UEFA Group G winner | November 17, 2025 | 12th | 2022 | Runner-up (1974, 1978, 2010) | 7 | 8 |
| F2 |  Japan | 2 | AFC | AFC third round Group C winner | March 20, 2025 | 8th | 2022 | Round of 16 (2002, 2010, 2018, 2022) | 18 | 18 |
| F3 |  Sweden | 4[nb 2] | UEFA | UEFA second round Path B winner | March 31, 2026 | 13th | 2018 | Runner-up (1958) | 43[nb 2] | 38 |
| F4 |  Tunisia | 3 | CAF | CAF Group H winner | September 8, 2025 | 7th | 2022 | Group stage (1978, 1998, 2002, 2006, 2018, 2022) | 40 | 45 |
Notes
- The rankings of November 2025 were used for seeding for the final draw.[5]
- As the identity of the UEFA second round Path B winner was not known at the time of the final draw, positions in the FIFA Rankings were not taken into account, and the placeholder in the draw was automatically seeded into pot 4.[5]
Standings
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Position will qualify for: |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Netherlands (X) |
2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 3 | +4 | 4 | Knockout stage |
| 2 | Japan (X) |
2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 2 | +4 | 4 | |
| 3 | Sweden (X) |
2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 3 | Possible knockout stage based on ranking |
| 4 | Tunisia (E) |
2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 9 | −8 | 0 |
Rules for classification: Group stage tiebreakers
(E) Eliminated; (X) Assured of top-three finish
In the round of 32:[2]
- The winner of Group F will advance to play the runner-up of Group C.
- The runner-up of Group F will advance to play the winner of Group C.
- The third-placed team of Group F might advance to play the winner of Group A, Group B, Group D, Group E, or Group I (if one of the eight best third-placed teams from the group stage).
Matches
All times listed are local.[1]
Netherlands vs Japan
The teams had met three times prior, including the Netherlands' 1–0 group stage victory at the 2010 FIFA World Cup.[6] Their most recent meeting took place in 2013, a 2–2 friendly draw.[7]
| Netherlands | 2–2 | Japan |
|---|---|---|
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[Report 1] |
         Netherlands[8]
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     Japan[8]
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Man of the Match:
Assistant referees:[8]
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Sweden vs Tunisia
The teams have met on four previous occasions, always in friendlies. Tunisia won the most recent meeting in 2003, by 1–0.[10]
Sweden's five goals were the second-most the team has ever scored in a single World Cup match, behind only their 8–0 victory over Cuba in 1938.[11]
After the match, Tunisia manager Sabri Lamouchi was terminated from his managing duties. It was the first time that a manager was sacked during the FIFA World Cup since the 1998 edition when Tunisia’s then manager Henryk Kasperczak and his side lost its first two group stage matches 2–0 to England and 1–0 to Colombia respectively.[12] Additionally, Carlos Alberto Parreira, who was managing Saudi Arabia, and Cha Bum-kun, who was managing South Korea, both in the same tournament, were also terminated after their first two matches as well.
     Sweden[13]
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    Tunisia[13]
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Man of the Match:
Assistant referees:[13]
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Netherlands vs Sweden
The teams have met on 20 previous occasions, including a scoreless draw during the group stage at the 1974 FIFA World Cup, and most recently in a 2–0 win for the Netherlands in a World Cup Qualifier match in 2017.[14]
The fixture was Sweden's worst defeat at the World Cup since being thrashed 7−1 by Brazil in 1950, which also remains Brazil's biggest win in a tournament match.
| Netherlands | 5–1 | Sweden |
|---|---|---|
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[Report 3] |
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 Netherlands[15]
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     Sweden[15]
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Man of the Match:
Assistant referees:[15]
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Tunisia vs Japan
The teams have previously met six times, including Japan's 2–0 group stage victory at the 2002 FIFA World Cup (which they co-hosted with South Korea). Their latest meeting took place in the 2023 Kirin Challenge Cup, which Japan also won by 2–0.[16]
This fixture was the 1,000th World Cup match, with the previous milestone (900th) having been reached in the 2018 FIFA World Cup final.[17]
    Tunisia[18]
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 Japan[18]
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Man of the Match:
Assistant referees:[18]
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Japan vs Sweden
The teams have met seven times, with Japan's only win from the notorious match in the 1936 Olympics in the first round. Their most recent meeting, a friendly in 2002, ended in a 1–1 draw.[19]
| Japan | Match 57 | Sweden |
|---|---|---|
| [Report 5] |
 Japan
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Sweden
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Tunisia vs Netherlands
The teams have previously faced each other thrice, most recently in a 2009 friendly match that ended in a 1–1 draw.[20]
| Tunisia | Match 58 | Netherlands |
|---|---|---|
| [Report 6] |
Tunisia
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Netherlands
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Discipline
The team conduct ("fair play") score will be used as a tiebreaker if the head-to-head and overall records of teams are tied. It will also be used as a tiebreaker for the third-place ranking between groups if the overall records of teams are tied. The score will be calculated based on yellow and red cards received by players and team officials in all group matches as follows:[2]
- yellow card: −1 point;
- indirect red card (second yellow card): −3 points;
- direct red card: −4 points;
- yellow card and direct red card: −5 points;
Only one of the above deductions can be applied to a player or team official in a single match.
| Team | Match 1 | Match 2 | Match 3 | Score | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Japan |
0 | ||||||||||||
| Tunisia |
1 | −1 | |||||||||||
| Netherlands |
3 | −3 | |||||||||||
| Sweden |
3 | −3 | |||||||||||